Current weather

Weather helps fight against blazes, but winds could return

Posted: Tuesday, October 30, 2007

SAN DIEGO - Firefighters aided by damp weather made progress against the last of Southern California's big wildfires Monday, hoping to squelch the remaining flames before the possible return of Santa Ana winds this week.

There was a chance of weak-to-moderate Santa Anas on Friday and Saturday, but the National Weather Service said wind speeds should be "half or less" than those of the dry, withering blasts that fanned conflagrations last week.

In the meantime, clouds drawn ashore by low pressure over the Pacific streamed across the region and forecasters predicted some chance of sprinkles through Wednesday morning. The flow of ocean air "should provide a literal breath of fresh air, flush out the smoke and improve the air quality," the Weather Service said.

Fire crews were already benefiting from precipitation in some areas, said Daniel Berlant, a spokesman for the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. "We continue to make great progress," he said.

The 58,401-acre Ranch Fire northwest of Los Angeles in Ventura County was fully contained during the night and crews were pushing to complete lines around six other big blazes. Containment estimates on those fires ranged from 65 percent to 95 percent Monday.

The wind gusted last week up to 100 mph, pushing flames across more than 500,000 acres of seven Southern California counties.

The state Office of Emergency Services damage tally rose Monday to 2,786 structures destroyed, including more than 2,000 homes.

Nearly all mandatory evacuation orders had been lifted, and victims have begun assessing damage and trying to figure out where to go next.

Nearly 8,300 people had contacted the Federal Emergency Management Agency for assistance, said spokeswoman Kelly Hudson. FEMA has handed out $600,000 in housing assistance so far, most of it for rental payments and hotel stays, and the agency was putting about 260 inspectors in the field to verify claims, she said.